PR can create all sorts of opportunities for a business, and it's how you communicate to your wider stakeholders with the most relevant messages that represent your business strategic vision. People need to be aware of your mission to be part of, and to spread that vision. By understanding your place in the market, you can begin to figure out how to own that space.
PR should talk to your buyers, their influencers, your partners, customers, employees, investors and future talent. Don't limit yourself to PR being about sales, it goes much deeper than that.
And that is why, for me at least, these #PRmyths need to be busted: -
Myth One - PR is about #journalists
NO! PR actually means Public Relations, public referring to all the audiences connected to your business - or you may term them stakeholders. Stakeholders are either internal or external and have direct or indirect influence on your business. Some are primary, others are secondary, a few sit on the periphery.
You need to know who your #stakeholders are and the influence they have on your business and your business strategy. In my experience, too many companies forget about the huge value their internal stakeholders have over the success of their business and achieving core strategic goals. There is often too much emphasis placed on prospects than on existing or long-term retained customers
Furthermore, I often see organisations ignore competitors or industry peers in favour of 'going it alone' - failing to see the opportunity of leadership through collaboration. Most of the world's most successful companies are built by word of mouth and recommendation, and you don't have to be a customer to talk positively about another company.
Myth Two - PR is not measurable
FALSE!!! Without KPIs all activity is immeasurable. You need to take time to set #KPIs for your business goals and use the right PR activity to help achieve those. Maintaining and developing good relations internally can increase retention rates, productivity, and sales plus reduce absenteeism.
Building strong industry relations and communicating business milestones and thought-leadership can give you access to a wider talent pool and therefore more applicants for vacancies.
A piece of news coverage or a feature piece in a magazine can lead to increase web visits or customers - if you target the right publication that represents your core audience.
Working closely with Government officials can change laws and regulation. Don't underestimate the power or PR, as it can all be tracked and measured.
Myth Three - PR is all spin and lies
It doesn't have to be! And I hope not! PR certainly goes a long way in celebrating the success and achievements of a business, but certainly the more lies you spin the more likely you are to become undone.
Strong, sustainable PR rests in the foundation of evidence, using fact as your base point helps drive the ambition to grow the business further. By embedding PR practices across every department and channel, they can contribute to deliver results that can be shared and celebrated. Don't leave results just to the weekly call - make it part of the fabric of your business.
PR is what you make it - and is the best way to communicate your values and beliefs.
Myth Four - PR doesn't tell the whole story
Actually this IS True - but that's because the story can be too long-winded, be full of complicated technical jargon and buzz words, or it's just irrelevant! The job of PR is to tell the narrative using accessible language that the widest audience can connect with.
PR experts are the translators of the intelligent whizz kids and number crunching wizards; it's our job to simplify the message so people understand and see themselves in the solution.
Let the story be split into chapters to keep your audience engaged.
Myth Five - PR is expensive
True if you want the bells, whistles and glitter too. However PR can be tiered, you need to focus PR on the areas of the business that will help you achieve your commercial goals. This is no different to trying to do #broadcast advertising, some budgets stretch to peak-time programming, others rely on regional off-peak schedules.
But you need to do what's right for your strategic goals, and ensure the PR results are delivering on those goals. Too often PR Agencies will celebrate all and any coverage, but if it doesn't meet your business goals - it's not worth celebrating.
If your goal is to build partnerships in your industry sector, you only need media coverage in your specific trade sector, you only should do events where the potential partners attend, you only need to share stories that connect with target partners' strategic goals.
When taking on an agency - understand the value that their work will bring to your business goals.
Conclusion
Strategic marketing is about fulfilling the mission of the business through a set of commercial gaols, making noise in the market sector to encourage engagement, consumption and purchase of your product. Marketing must communicate to audiences, defined by their habits, interests and association to the company - relationships need to be developed with these stakeholders to build sustainability for the business.
Don't forget - PR = public relations
It's nothing to do with fluffy campaigns and media coverage - it's about what your company truly stands for!
Do you have business goals in mind for your business and want to know how PR can help? Give me a call and we can talk to you about a suitable approach to realise your aims. ryan@ryanhaynesmarketing.com